Arch support



1931 M. P. BRINGARDNER 2 Sheets-Sheet l ARCH SUPPORT Filed Oct. 24. 1929 iNVENTOR marw gfirwgym'mr /ww ATTORNEYS Aug, E8, 1931. M. P. BRINGARDNER ARCH SUPPORT F'iled Oct. 24. 1929 2 Shoots-Sheet 2 77y i INVENTOR 5 V w fifiiflganzlzer ATTORNEYS Patented Aug. 18, 1931 UNHTE srmss MARTIN 1. BRINGARDNER, OF ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI ARCH SUPPORT Application filed October 24, 1929. Serial No. 402,078.

. This invention relates to a pad for supporting the arch of the foot and primarily to a pad which is built into and forms a permanent part of the shoe, but which may bemade as a separate article to be inserted into shoes already in use.

Thebone structure of the foot is divided into anterior, intermediate and posterior portions. The anterior portion consists of the phalanges or toe bones; the intermediate portion is the metatarsus; while the posterior portion is the tarsus. The tarsus comprises the tarsal or cuneiform bones, the scaphoid or navicular, the astragalus or talus, all of which are on the inner side of the foot, the oscalsis or heel bone, and the calcaneum or cuboid both of which are on the outer side of the foot.

When a person stands upright the weight of the body is more or less uniformly distributed over the. entire foot, but during the act of walking the weight is continually shifted from the oscalsis to the metatarsals and phalanges. As it is practically impossible to have the sole of the shoe conform accurately to the sole of the foot, and as shoes are ordinarily constructed with soles of a more or less unyielding character, the continual shifting of the weight of the body to the different parts of the foot frequently causes weak or fallen arches, fiat-footedness, strained muscles or foot troubles of other kinds.

It has been proposed to prevent or alleviate such foot troubles invarious ways, and at the present time there are a large number of devices on the market for that purpose. While some of these devices have been found to give partial relief, more frequently it happens that the desired results are not'attained. It is my belief that the unsatisfactory results which-the various arch supports heretofore used have given has beendue to the fact that,being intended to support the longitudinal arch, they do not give the support at the place where it is most needed. This failure to support the arch at the proper place has not only failed to give the desired result, but, in many cases, has actually caused an increase in the anatomical defect by causing the weakened and strained portions of the arch to be given less support than they would otherwise normally receive.

As there is little movement when walking between the phalanges or at the junction of the phalanges with the metatarsal bones, but considerable movement at the junction of the metatarsal bones with the bones of the tarsus and between the various bones of the tarsus, particularly at the head of the astragalus where it articulates with the scaphoid, and as the junction of the astrag'alus with the scaphoid and oscalsis is at the top of the arch formed by the bones of the metatarsus and the tarsus, it is the astragalus and other bones of the tarsus which should be mainly supported to preventor properly alleviate foot troubles. Therefore, it is an object of my invention to provide a pad which will not only support the metatarsal arch, but which will also support the astragalus, scaphoid and oscalsis in their proper normal or relative position to each other and to the bones of the tarsus group, as well as in ,7 proper relation to the bones of the metatarsus, and thereby permit a free and natural movement between those bones and the phalanges.

Unless one .is particularly versed in ailments of the feet it is very diflicultto ascertain at what point of the arch additional support is needed, and even then it is practically impossible to maintain a movable pad in the shoe at the proper place. As I have found that in practically all cases the additional support is mainly needed under the astragalus, it is preferable that the archsupporting pad be inserted into the shoe during the manufacture thereof, at which time it may be out size for size with the shoe and inserted at the exact point to properly support theastragalus and associated bones in their normal position.

While the invention is primarily directed to a pad for supporting the bones comprising the tarsus group, it also includesa portion extending beneath the metatarsal bones for their support and, as it is frequently desirable to have the metatarsal portion of thepad adjustable so that it may be shiftedbeneath the several metatarsal bones, it is also an object of my invention to provide a shoe having that portion of the pad under the metatarsal region adjustable to provide for abnormality of any of the metatarsal bones.

The various features of the invention will be further described in connection with the accompanying drawings but it is to be understood that this more detailed disclosure and description is .intended as an.exemplification of the invention and that the invention is not limited thereto. In these drawings:

Figure l is a longitudinal sectional view through a shoe showing my invention applied thereto;

Fig. 2 is a cross sectional View on line 22 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a plan view of the sock lining of the shoe showing the relation of the archsupporting pad thereto;

Fig. 4 is a cross sectional view 011 line of Fig. 3;

Fig. 5 is a perspective View of the archsupporting pad removed from the sock lining; and

Fig. 6 is a plan view of a modified form of arch-supporting pad.

Referring now to the drawings, the numeral 1 represents a shoe of standard construction except that the sock lining is replaced by a sock lining 2having an archsupporting pad 3 inserted between its upper and lower layers 4 and 5. The supporting pad 3 is made of sponge rubber or other resilient material, and comprises the portion 6 which is shaped to conform to the bottom of the heel and properly distribute .the pressure caused by the weight of the body and which underlies the rear portion of the oscalsis 7, the portion 8 which underlies the forward end of the oscalsis, the as tragalus 9, the scaphoid 10 and the tarsal 11, and the forward or metatarsal portion 12 which underlies the metatarsal bones 13. The portion 6 is relatively thick on the outer rear edge and gradually tapers off until it reaches the line 14. From the line 14 the pad gradually thickens in a sidewise direction to form the portion 8 which extends upwardly and outwardly to conform to the contour of the foot and support the forward end of the oscalsis 7, the astragalus 9 and the scaphoid 10, as well as partially support the tarsal 11. The portion 8 isthe thickest at the point 15 which is beneath the junction of the astragalus with the scaphoid and oscalsis, and from that point tapers off to a relatively thin edge.

Going forwardly from the line 14 the pad also gradually thickens and forms the metatarsal pad portion 12 having-a convex upper surface which extends throughout the length of the shank and forms a. support for tarsal bones 13. To provide for the adjusting of the metatarsal portion 12, a strlp 16 is secured thereto and extends beyond the side edges of the layers at and ,5 so that it may be grasped by the fingers to shift that portion of the pad horizontally in either direction to bring it to the desired position.

In constructing a shoe embodying my improved arch-supporting sock liner, the pad 3 of the exact size for the shoe is secured between the upper and lower layers 4 and 5, which are also cut to exactly fitthe shoe, by stitching 17 which passes through the pad along the line 14 where the pad is Very thin and then extends rearwardly along each side of the pad. The stitching along the rear and middle portions of the pad follows closely the edge thereof, but graduall diverges therefrom to form a pocket 18 .with

in which the metatarsal portion ofzthe pad maybe adjusted horizontally. It is, of

.course,understood that no stitching extends across the strip 16 which ;is .left free .to

cause the horizonal shifting of the .metatarsal portion 12 of the pad. After the sock liner has been completed by securing the pad 3 between the upper and lower faces at and 5, it is pasted or otherwise secured in the shoe where it completely fills the region between the inseam channels.

The ends of the strip which extend beyond the edge of the sock liner-are permitted to .lay on the inside of theshoe where theymay be readily grasped when it is desired to shift the metatarsal pad horizontally to give support to a particular metatarsal bone.

In the modification shown in Fig.6 the stitching 17 which passes through .the pad .along the line 141- isomitted, and thestitching whichextends along the outer edge .is carried inwardly and then outwardly again as indicated at 19. That portion ofthe pad through which the stitching 19 passes is sufliciently thin so that there is no difficulty .in stitching the same-on the vmachines ordinarily used for that purpose.

From the aforegoing description it will be apparent that I have provided an archsupporting pad which will completely fill the space between the shoe and the foot, and being built into the shoe" during its manufacture and cutsize forsize therewith, cannot shift or get out of place, but will at all times cushion the foot and give the necessary support to the astragalus and other bones of the tarsus group and maintain them in their proper and normal relation to the other bones of the foot. It will also be apparent that the metatarsal pad 12 being adjustable horizontally Within the pocket 18, may be shifted to take care of abnormality in any of the metatarsal bones.

What I claim is:

1. A shoe having arch supporting means built therein, said means comprising a stationary portion at the tarsal region and an 1 integral adjustable portion at the metatarsal region, and means for shifting said adjustable portion.

2. A shoe having arch supporting means built therein, said means comprising a stationary portion at the tarsal region and an integral, transversely adjustable portion at the metatarsal region, and means for shifting said adjustable portion. r I

3. In a shoe, a sock liner, arch supporting 2 means beneath said sock liner comprising a stationary portion at the tarsal region and an adjustable portion of the metatarsal region, and means attached to said adjustable portion and extending beyond the edge of the sock liner for shifting said adjustable portion.

4. A shoe having a resilient pad built therein, said pad comprising a stationary portion having its upper surface shaped to conform to the heel and tarsal portions of the foot, and an integral adjustable portion underlying the metatarsal region of the foot.

In testimony whereof I afiix my si nature.

MARTIN P. BRINGARDTSTER. 

